Category: Uncategorized

We’ll miss you Andre.

Dear members of the Semester at Sea Fall 2010 voyage community:

It is with the deepest sadness and remorse that I inform you of the loss of one of our students today aboard the MV Explorer while docked in Vietnam. Andre Ramadan, 20, a sophomore at the University of California-Santa Barbara, died of unknown medical causes. The Institute for Shipboard Education and senior voyage administrators are in close contact with the U.S. State Department, Vietnamese officials, representatives from UC Santa Barbara, and Andre’s family. We wish to convey our condolences to them and to his many friends. Please keep them in your thoughts.

Counseling and support services are available to all members of the Semester at Sea voyage community. Participants are urged to contact Student Support Services at x3333 or the Dean of Students at x2336.

The Institute for Shipboard Education and the Fall 2010 Semester at Sea voyage administration will inform participants and others of opportunities to remember Andre as plans are finalized.

-President Les McCabe

halong bay. How long is it. we may never know, but it is the most beautiful place ive ever been.

halong bay in the morning! pho is excellent.

We’re about to reach Ho Chi Minh City! My spot messenger should be working again also, so that current location button should be updated shortly. Tomorrow is a Nike factory tour, I’m very excited. Sean and I got lucky, apparently only 30 out of the 100 people who signed up actually get to go. I don’t want to ruin my fancy new shoes so I’ll be wearing adidas on this trip, hopefully things don’t get weird. I heard that some guys on the ship found a place to shoot a rocket propelled grenade, I’m jealous. The day after tomorrow we’ll be flying up to Hanoi and then we’re going to Halong bay to stay on a junk ship for 2 nights, very very exciting. Although these adventures will be exciting, I feel I’m missing out by not going on the Cambodia trip. It is important for all of us to understand the dangers of a government with too much power. I’m glad things will likely begin to change tonight in the US. Yes I just did that.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu has just lead us in prayer for our fellow semester at sea student Genna Gaylord. She is suffering from Malaria in ICU at a hospital in Chennai India. She’s been in a small room with no windows, no tv, no internet, and only Indian food for 12 days. We understand that she is not doing very well at all. Everyday the Dean’s memo says she will be out soon, but she is currently on a ventilator as three quarters of her total lung volume is collapsed. We all hope she gets better soon.